As a true example of Venezuela's social, intercultural and musical talent, Fesnojiv (Sistema Nacional de Orquestas Juveniles e Infantiles de Venezuela) or “The System” is a real pride for Venezuelans, since it demonstrates how people from mixed origins (some of them come from very poor and violent areas of the country) can be able to understand and perform wonderfully the works of authors from faraway lands. These young musicians add something to the Venezuelan soul, always looking for something to call its own, and to add to their own identity. The performances are breathtaking, the stories are touching, and the mixtures and styles are impressive.

Domingo says:

Los integrantes que conforman hoy día esta orquesta comenzaron con orquestas de barrio, a lo que le siguen orquestas departamentales y regionales, algunos de sus integrantes llevan consigo historias de delincuencia juvenil, problemas de drogas, robos, vida en la calle, y para todos ellos “El sistema” ha significado la transformación de sus vidas en plena adolescencia y juventud. Los integrantes más jóvenes pueden tener dos años de edad y el promedio no supera los 22 años. El Sistema ha sobrevivido a todos los eventos políticos, sociales y económicos que han ocurrido en Venezuela durante los últimos 30 años, recibiendo siempre el apoyo de los Gobiernos de turno.

Nicodemo celebrates the 2008 Principe de Asturias Arts Prize awarded to the orchestra.

El fundador de las Orquestas Juveniles de Venezuela, Jose Antonio Abreu, fue designado recientemente miembro honorario de la “Royal Philharmonic Society” del Reino Unido, y uno de sus ex alumnos, Gustavo Dudamel, recibió el premio al mejor artista joven del año.Son premios a la esperanza, al papel restaurador de humanidad que puede tener el arte.

The documentary Tocar y luchar (To Play and to Fight) tells the story of the system and part of his members.

On that day Bloggers will recommend other blogs to their blog visitors. With the goal in mind, on this day every blogger will post a recommendation of 5 new blogs. This way, all blog readers will find themselves leaping around and discovering new, previously unknown blogs.

Members of the Latin American team from Global Voices Online decided to recommend five blogs collectively as a group, and one post in particular that may be of interest to others:

Venezuela

Luis Carlos Díaz recommends El Chigüire Bipolar [es], which is an increasingly popular blog from Venezuela and one that has received half a million visits in less than four months online. The post titled, “We Never Thought That 203 Other Countries Would Attend” [es] is a satirical post about Venezuela's participation in the recent Olympics:

El presidente del Comité Olímpico Venezolano (COV), Eduardo Álvarez, aclaró hoy en rueda de prensa las razones por las que hasta ahora la delegación venezolana no ha cumplido las expectativas trazadas en un principio en las Olimpíadas de Beijing. “Cuando hicimos el pronóstico de 5 medallas de oro, nunca pensamos que iban a asistir otros 203 países a la cita. Eso echó al suelo el pronóstico inicial” informó Álvarez ante la insistencia de los medios y la opinión pública, que esperaban ver a los venezolanos en los podios de Beijing.

Peru

Juan Arellano highly recommends the blog Choledad Privada [es], which may only be understandable by Peruvians for its slang and “inside jokes.” However, articles are meant to elicit laughter from its readers for its tongue-in-cheek articles “How Much Does a Peruvian Cost?” and about other subtle peculiarities of Peruvian society [es].

Argentina

Jorge Gobbi from Buenos Aires, recommends Merodeador [es], which is a blog that focuses primarily on the media, but also other topics such as the lack of recycling programs in the capital. There was one law called Basura Cero (Zero Garbage) that sought to reduce the amount of waste by 30%, however, that was ended by the current mayor. There is one type of informal recycling program that is carried out by “cartoneros” (cardboarders):

Todas las noches, los cartoneros revuelven las bolsas de basura antes de ser recogidas por los camiones, en busca de papeles y cartones que luego venden para su reciclaje. Es ésa su única retribución: el pago por la cantidad de papel que juntan.

Ecuador

Milton Ramirez, who writes about Ecuador recommends Dialogo con Joselias [es], which discusses the role of provincial autonomies in the new Constitution. Joselias criticizes a recent editorial in the newspaper El Telégrafo, which dismisses the call of the province of Manabí for increased autonomy.

Con el más puro egoísmo intelectual analiza la aspiración manabita de su autonomía administrativa. Nos ubica como “sucursal menor del bastión guayaquileño”. Que la autonomía es una cantaleta que “vuelve desde otra provincia, Manabí, para confundir a la opinión pública”. Que desde Manabí se está calificando al Presidente de “dictador” y “traidor” porque la Asamblea Constituyente no aprobó la autonomía manabita.

Bolivia

One of the new bloggers from the Voces Bolivianas project, Virginio Sandy, represents his indigenous community as one of the leaders. One member of the community is named “Authority” for the duration of one year, after which it is rotated to another. He also represents his community online with his blog Ayllus de Dalence [es], where he writes about festivities, traditions, but also about archeaological ruins near his community.

Por las caracteristicas que presenta, se evidencia que fue una fortaleza, la que fue construida con fines defensivos y refugio de los habitantes, cuando eran atacados por otros pueblos. Al pie de esta fortaleza se encuentra la Comunidad de Pucara Grande, población milenaria, cuyos origenes se pierden en el tiempo y espacio. Esta fortaleza conserva aun parte de las tres murallas que se erigieron alrededor de la colina y en la parte superior de este cerro, se encuentra los cimientos, de viviendas circulares, todas con puertas orientadas hacia la salida del sol.

Currently the Yukpa Indians have taken over the ranches, and the landowners who live off meat and dairy production are unable to continue their work. This situation has been made more difficult due to military presence in the area which has caused a siege state, where the Indigenous groups are not allowed to walk freely on their lands or out of them and journalists are blocked from going inside the area to report of Human Rights abuses such as the alleged hiring of Colombian hit-men who have been targeting entire communities and who beat to death a 109 year old indigenous elder. Finally the Yukpa broke through the communication blocks, have gotten through to the media and have reached the community of Machique on August 26th 2008, and Hugo Chávez has declared that these lands should be given back and the indigenous community's rights should be respected. In the collective blog Voces Urgentes (Urgent Voices), they pose several questions regarding the future of this situation and its resolution:

Ahora bien ¿Por qué el cerco se rompe solo cuando Chávez se pronuncia? ¿Qué tuvo que pasar para que Chávez se enterara? ¿La represión, agresión y vulneración de los hermanos yukpa todo este tiempo no era suficiente? ¿Cuál ha sido la actuación de las autoridades ante las sucesivas demandas de los indígenas Yukpa? ¿Por qué la ministra del Poder Popular para los Asuntos Indígenas, Nicia Maldonado, recomendó a los Yukpa respetar la propiedad privada y hacer turismo en una zona aislada y árida? ¿Quiénes y con cuáles criterios se realizará el proceso de demarcación de las tierras indígenas?

So now, why is the blockage only broken when Chávez has spoken? What happened to clue Chavez into what was happening? The repression, aggression and veneration of the Yukpa brothers all through this time weren’t enough? What have been the actions of the authorities when faced with the constant demands of the Yukpa Indians? Why is the Popular Power for Indigenous Affairs minister, Nicia Maldonado, recommending that the Yukpa should respect private property and live of tourism in an isolated and arid area? By whom and with which criteria will the demarcation of indigenous lands take place?

The following video uploaded by coritoj is only one of dozens documenting the plight of this community and how it is just becoming known to the general public. In the video, they relate how one of the landowners told them that he could basically do what he wanted since every authority had been bribed already, and that he wasn't going to go to jail even if the went up to the President himself, because he had money to pay to get out:

This other video by ProyectoSuri shows a humanitarian caravan led by the ANMCLA organization trying to pass into Yukpa territory to deliver food and medication to the indigenous community, but they are blocked by military officers. Nevertheless, the same army that didn’t allow them to pass was perfectly willing to let a truck loaded with food for pigs to pass. The community organizations managed to convince the truck driver that it was unfair and unconstitutional to deliver food to animals when food for humans wasn't being let through, and he is shown to take the truck back from the picket line. Later in the video, the members of the Yukpa arrive at the border of the siege area and state that no army should control indigenous communities, but that they should be lead by community leaders chosen by them, and they should be able to invite people into their territories. However, the humanitarian caravan wasn't allowed to pass and deliver the food and medicines due to the army's intransigence on this point, several of them were injured, and 3 were arrested. Two days later, the president recognized the Yukpa Indian's rights to reclaim their lands.

Dozens of other videos on the subject can be viewed here. (Venezuelan Flag image by Guillermo Esteves)

Some Venezuelan bloggers like Rosa of Las Cosas de Rosa [es] remember Lauro and writes an interesting post about the musician (with music files, links and pictures) and points out:

Antonio Lauro es considerado como uno de los principales maestros latinoamericanos de la guitarra, contribuyendo además a ampliar de manera definitiva el repertorio universal de ese instrumento.

Eduardo Casanova writes in his blog Literanova [es]:

Fue mi profesor de música en el Colegio Santiago de León de Caracas, en donde organizó un pequeño coro, tal como lo había hecho en muchos colegios, con lo que fue el verdadero creador del movimiento coral venezolano, que tantos éxitos ha logrado. Con muchísimo orgullo oí varias de sus obras en emisoras radiales europeas, mientras viví en Europa, porque el Profesor Lauro es el músico venezolano, y hasta latinoamericano, más conocido en el mundo.

“Natalia” is one of Venezuela's most representative pieces of modern Venezuelan “classical” music. Lauro wrote it for his only daughter and is nowadays not only recognized for its fine beauty, but also for being a challenging piece among guitarists (which can be seen in the coments below the video):

Tan Toche publishes an interesting video in which famous artists give playing “Natalia” a try.

In this video, the composer plays a lullaby he composed for his grandaughter, María Cristina in a guitar made especially for him.

Photo by JCox and used under a Creative Commons license.

The Dancing Devils of Yare, a pagan-Christian celebration in Venezuela that takes place nine Thursdays after Holy Thursday, and is a very typical artistic and cultural expression of the region. To understand better what it is all about, in this Wikipedia article Dancing Devils of Yare, there are good explanations and links to journalistic works from some newspapers:

The Dancing Devils of Yare (Diablos Danzantes del Yare) is the name of a religious festivity celebrated in San Francisco de Yare, Miranda state, Venezuela, at the Corpus Christi day. The Sociedades del Santísimo (Societies of the Holiest) are in charge of the celebration. Its origins are traced back to the 18th century, being the oldest brotherhood of the American continent.

Every Corpus Christi (nine Thursdays after Holy Thursday), a ritual dance is performed by the so called “Dancing Devils”, who wear colorful garments (commonly all red), layers of stripped fabric, masks of grotesque appearance and also accessories like crosses, scapulars, rosaries and other sorts of amulets.

The fraternity of the devils is divided in hierarchical order, represented in their masks.

There are other expressions of this particular festivity named according to the location, such as the Devils of Naiguatá and the Devils of Chuao.

The blog Talento Venezolano [es] provides some additional background on the tradition :

Los “Diablos Danzantes de Yare” es, sin duda, un orgullo mirandino para toda Venezuela(…) Su origen nos viene desde la colonia y su verdadero nacimiento gira en torno a decenas de versiones. Lo importante es que los “diablos” hacen su devoción o promesa por razones de salud o por tradición. Se puede danzar por un tiempo determinado o por vida, una vez entrado en el “clan” el incumplimiento acarrea severas sanciones.

Las Cosas de Rosa [es] adds details of the costumes worn by the dancers:

La fraternidad de Diablos de este pequeño pueblo colonial es la más vieja del continente americano y tal vez la más organizada. Camisa, pantalón y medias rojas, máscara y alpargatas, es el vestuario de Diablo. Llevan una cruz de palma bendita, el rosario y la medalla del Santísimo, que por ser difícil de conseguir se sustituye por otra medalla de una imagen religiosa cristiana. Llevan en una mano una maraca en forma de diablo y en la otra un látigo.

You can also see a video [es] that provides images of the tradition, and Hector Rattia provides testimonies through his pictures on his Flickr account. There is also an excellent photo essay site at Behind the Mask.

Photo by Rußen and used under a Creative Commons license.

Venezuelans say goodbye to another of their poets in times when they need them the most. On June 6th, enthusiasts of literature and arts in Venezuela received the sad news of the death of one of the most important and influential writers in the last years: Eugenio Montejo.

Montejo's poetry is well recognized for its rich texture. He was also published in numerous books in Spanish and participated in numerous editorial works devoted to Venezuelan literature. He won the national prize of literature and the international prize Octavio Paz. He has been seen as the most important poet of the last years. Numerous groups, pages, blogs and even Facebook groups [es] have been dedicated to him and his poetry. The day after his death the discussion board was filled with comments about the importance of his poetry and how he will be eternally remembered.

Bloggers share opinions and feelings while they remember and thank all the beautiful words which so many of them identified themselves with.

Another interesting fact is that through González Iñárritu’s film, 21 Grams, Montejo gained more attention when Sean Penn's character quoted a line from one of his poems…

“The earth turned to bring us closer. It turned on itself and in us, until it finally brought us together in this dream.”

Jorge, in his blog Letralia [es] wrote:

Anoche se fue Eugenio Montejo, dejándonos con esto encendido, no sin antes
despedirse de su siglo vertical y lleno de teorías. En 2002 había revelado las bases de su credo: La poesía es la última religión que nos queda. Si hay un juicio final, será ante ella.

From Peru, Moleskine Literario [es] writes:

Al parecer, los poetas nunca mueren solos. Unas semanas después de la muerte de nuestro Alejandro Romualdo Valle, el duelo le toca ahora a Venezuela. A los 70 años murió Eugenio Montejo, considerado el mayor poeta de ese país.

Juliana Boersner of Papel en Blanco [es], says:

¿Cómo escribir desde la tristeza? ¿Cómo teclear a través de las lágrimas de impotencia por ver apagarse tan raudamente una de las mejores voces de la poesía del mundo hispano, aún con tanto por ofrecernos?

Rostro de Viento's [es] José Urriola says:

Al poeta Eugenio Montejo lo habré visto si acaso tres veces en la vida. La primera fue de niño en los pasillos del Edificio de Estudios Generales de la Universidad Simón Bolívar. En esa oportunidad yo iba de la mano de mi padre que se detuvo a saludar a un hombre de lentes de pasta, mostacho negro y saco beige a cuadros. Papá me dijo: “Hijo, conozca a uno de los grandes poetas de este país, Eugenio Montejo”. A lo que el bigotón respondió con un acento que me pareció andino: “Amigo, no le crea a su padre. Yo no soy poeta, soy bombero”.

Anoche murió Eugenio Montejo. Se murió uno de los nuestros, uno de los grandes, uno de los buenos. Se murió alguien que a ningún venezolano debería serle indiferente.

Argonauticas [es] adds:

Eugenio Montejo escribió algunos de los poemas más hermosos que se han escrito en lengua castellana. Después de realizar ese portento, el suceso de su muerte el pasado viernes es, acaso, apenas un episodio en la vastedad del tiempo.

Argonauticas also gives a very interesting link to The Trees: Selected Poems 1967-2004

Meanwhile, concerns and issues appear each week like fireworks, dispersing one's attention. There have been many bumping of heads with the Venezuelan government ever since it lost last December's referendum aimed at reforming the national Constitution. This is part one in an article collecting some viewpoints of Venezuelan bloggers regarding Chavez' recent policy changes regarding education and intelligence.

Laws

Due to the discomfort from many teachers across the country, the new Bolivarian Educational Curriculum was halted, which had included several “socialist” ideological components that was to be included in the students' studies. Blog Al Agua [es] attended one of the classes for teachers and comments:

Resulta pavoroso el hecho de que se pretenda ideologizar la educación venezolana a partir de un palimpsesto de imágenes nacionalistas, frases hechas de corte castro-comunista y lugares comunes de la indefinible politiquería oficial. Terrible el hecho de que se mantenga a los educadores sometidos a esa vejación a punta de amenazas sobre su futuro profesional.

RomRod [es] also said that there lacked debate from public opinion, and that the law was not analyzed carefully:

Como corderitos todos van a la jornadas donde les están inyectando a los docentes de este país el nuevo currículum bolivariano mesmo.

A month later, due to the underground displeasure from the teachers' unions, the government withdrew the educational program that included remnants of the Constitutional reform that was not approved.

The National Assembly also decided to reverse some laws that it had changed to control the motorized traffic anarchy [es] and the high bus fares. After two large protests that collapsed the center of Caracas [es], both measures were cancelled. In addition to the raise in fares, the bus drivers called for justice for the kidnapping of an owner of a transport line. Days later he was murdered.

A Country of Informants

Another episode that had a lot of repercussions in the Venezuelan blogosphere was the decreed Law of Intelligence and Counterintelligence impulsed by Chávez through this entitled power. In Venezuela, the president was given the power to legislate and take on Congressional powers, in which the laws are not debated or approved in consensus by the citizens. This time, the debate took place after the fact and soon after, the sound of the streets and the internet sounded in the ears of the president. The Law of Intelligence and Counter-intelligence denominated the Toad Law (because a toad has a big mouth capable of telling others), turned Venezuela into a country of spies. The blogosphere was very active and said things like this:

The blogger Panfleto Negro [es] said “Todos seremos sapos” (We Will All Be Toads):

Como todos sabemos la defensa contra los crimenes contra la “seguridad nacional” ha sido la coartada usada por todos los gobiernos con ansias totalitarias - asi se escuden bajo ropajes democraticos - para acabar con sus adversarios politicos, con las demandas de los sectores sociales y mantener al resto de la poblacion en estado subalterno mediante la represion y la autorepresion impulsada por el miedo y la desconfianza mutua que son los unicos productos de una ley tan inhumana.

Iria Puyosa of Resteados [es] adds her thoughts on an especially troubling part of the proposed law:

“Este 28 de mayo salió en Gaceta Oficial la Ley del Sistema Nacional de Inteligencia y Contrainteligencia. Our very own Homeland Security Act, our Venezuelan Patriot Act. El Artículo 6 asigna las competencias al Sistema Nacional de Inteligencia y Contrainteligencia, entre otras cosas incluye:

“Identificar, prevenir y neutralizar toda actividad interna o externa ejecutada por cualquier factor que pretenda atentar contra la seguridad, la soberanía nacional, el orden constitucional y las instituciones democráticas.”

Es decir, casi cualquier cosa que usted se pueda imaginar que no le guste al gobierno”.

Khandika of Enigma Express [es] writes about a country of frogs and traitors. He also includes a piece of graffiti that says “Big Brother is Watching You.”

Me acuerdo de un profesor de la UCV que nos decía: venezuela es un nido de traidores. Y nosotros tomábamos la frase a manera de mamadera de gallo. Pero regresemos al tema de sapos y traidores. O más sutilmente de inteligencia y contrainteligencia. De ahora en adelante los informantes y colaboradores serán recompensados por el Estado acobijados bajo la nueva política de inteligencia y contrainteligencia. […] El fin último, en ambos casos, es de todas maneras el mismo: la obtención de información acerca de los enemigos. En este caso los enemigos, son los enemigos de la revolución.

Even though different political spokespersons appeared defending the law, the reversal was already in place. Chávez left his supporters with their defense on their lips and ordered the withdrawal of the law under the argument that the law is not bad, but there are components that generate fear through the use of the internet, text messages, television, the press and the radio. He continued by saying that there no dictatorship in place that no one would be obligated to say anything more that they want.

Jeanfreddy of Hay Que Ser Irresponsable [es] writes about the strategic halt to the law and Chavez' change of tone:

¡Alerta! Vuelve aquella labia de “por amor”. Como novio arrepentido, que viene por debajito porque se sabe culpable, es capaz de hacer las cosas más insólitas, bellas y conquistadoras, para mostrarse como alguien diligente, conciliador y hasta justo. Quizás cambiado.

Thumbnail photo by Rufino Uribe and used under a Creative Commons license